Scientists Discover Ancient Spider Fossil With Scorpion-like Tail

Researchers from the University of Kansas have discovered a 100 million-year-old fossil of a spider with a scorpion-like tail.

The primitive spider was discovered in a piece of amber, and is believed to have lived during the same time period as the dinosaurs in the rainforests of Myanmar.

“There’s been a lot of amber being produced from northern Myanmar and its interest stepped up about ten years ago when it was discovered this amber was mid-Cretaceous; therefore, all the insects found in it were much older than first thought,” the University of Kansas’s Paleontology Professor Paul Selden told The Sun.

“Amber is fossilized resin, so for a spider to have become trapped, it may well have lived under bark or in the moss at the foot of a tree,” he added.

According to the Metro, the newfound species has been named Chimerarachne after Chimera, a monster from Greek mythology who was composed of the body parts of multiple creatures.

A scorpion’s tail, which is called a telson, has never been known to be attached to a spider. The 3 mm tail is actually longer than the length of its body, which only stood at 2.5 mm.

Along with a tail, the arachnid is also believed to have sharp fangs – similar to those of modern-day spiders – but could inject its venom into insects trapped in their pincer-like claws.